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General Resources G/A-20 Rapier
The General Resources G/A-20 Rapier, or more commonly referred to as the 'Rapier', is single-seat, sixth generation, air superiority fighter aircraft developed by General Resources Ltd, for the UNSC Air Force. While it was originally designed as a multirole fighter, the Rapier's dogfighting and air-to-air combat capabilities impressed many in General Resources that it prompted engineers to re-evaluate the role of the Rapier which led to the development of the G/A-20A Rapier air superiority fighter. More than 100,000 Rapiers had been built since it was first introduced in 799 BNE. Like most combat aircraft of the Air Force, the Rapier utilizes the COFFIN system as a means to operate the aircraft. The Rapier first flew in 800 BNE and continues to fly to this day. Due to technological exchange policies of the UPEO, the Rapier, like most UNSC assets are restricted from being sold to foreign countries. Development Origins In 985 BNE, the UNSC AIr Force launched a study in order to determine what the Air Force is lacking most. Through the study it was discovered that the Air Force lacks a dedicated air superiority fighter. It was from this study that sparked the development of a dedicated air superiority fighter. However, the Rapier would not be developed from the discovery of this study, instead it would be developed from the discovery of it in an alternative project. A discovery In 932 BNE the Air Force held its annual air show where companies and individuals are permmi tted to display their designs of aircraft and/or even give live demonstrations of a finalized aircraft. One of those contestants, an individual known as 'Sharp Rapier' proposed the SR-20 Rapier for the next generation of multirole fighters of the Air Force. In the demonstration, Rapier's aircraft performed extremely well in the field of air-to-air combat, paticulary dogfights. It was through here that Air Force contacted Sharp Rapier and signed a contract with him of the design of his aircraft. Sharp Rapier agreed and in 50 BNE, Sharp was hired by General Resources Ltd, the Air Force's long-standing supplier of combat aircraft to develop the G/A-20 Rapier. G/A-xx program Over the course of the next 30 years, General Resources, with the help of Sharp Rapier would continue to develop the G/A-20 Rapier air superiority fighter. Initial models of the G/A-20 were the G-20A which was a single seat model and the G-20B which was a twin seat model. General Resources opted for the former design concept and dropped the latter. Fruition In 800 BNE the first prototype of the Rapier, knwn as the G-20X (Experimental) rolled out from General Resources hangar bay and conducted its first flight test. The aircraft performed admirably and its performance exceeded most expectations. Other than several minor problems, the Rapier performed flawlessly. Three months later, the finalized version of the Rapier, the G/A-20A Rapier was completed. After it was reviewed by Air Force officials, the Air Force gave General Resources the approval to go into full-scale production of the Rapier. An initial order of 7,000 Rapiers was placed but over the course of the following years, these numbers would continue to build up until it surpasses 100,000 units. Upgrades Even though the design of the G/A-20A had remained unchanged to date, General Resources continues to develop variants of the Rapier that adopts more specific roles. From these upgrades the G/A-20C Rapier was created. The G/A-20E released in 10 NE, is the latest version of the Rapier. Operational history Having been in service since 799 BNE, the Rapier is the oldest combat aircraft that the Air Force operates. The fact that it continues to remain in service even after 8 centuries is a sign that the Rapier is one of the most dependable combat aircraft. With more than 30,000 victories and 0 defeats in aerial dogfights, the Rapier is a foe to be reckoned with. Variants A/B The G/A-20A is the standard single seat version of the Rapier, while the G/A-20B is a twin-seat version of it. The latter used primarily for training. Despite of its use for training purposes, the B model is otherwise also combat capable. In 5 BNE, the engine unit of the G/A-20A was replaced with a much more modern engine unit that provides an extra 30% speed and 25% fuel efficiency as to compared to the previous engines performance of only 10% fuel efficiency. C/D The G/A-20C is the single seat version of this production model while the G/A-20D is the twin-seat version. The C/D version is a specialized version of the Rapier, designed specifically for use for the Marine Corps. The Marine Corps operate a small number of these air superiority fighter, providing the Marine Corps with their own air superiority fighters when they are deployed on other worlds. The G/A-20C carries an extra 40% fuel and its airframe is 25% larger than the G/A-20A. E/F - Sharpened Rapier The G/A-20E/F Sharpened Rapier family is the latest model of the Rapier air superiority fighter introduced by General Resources. The G/A-20E/F is essentially a modernized version of the old G/A-20A/B Rapiers. These differences include a 25% increase in fuel capacity, an upgraded COFFIN system, additional armaments available for the aircraft, a 10% increase in the aircrafts overall size, improved avionics etc. The G/A-20E Sharpened Rapier is the single seat version while the G/A-20F Sharpened Rapier is the twin seat version. The F family is used primarily for training but it is still fully combat capable. The E/F Sharpened Rapier is expected to gradually replace the aging G/A-20A/B Rapiers by 20 NE. Technical specifications General characteristics (G/A-20E Sharpened Rapier) *'Crew:' 1 *'Length:' 17.5 m *'Wingspan: '''12 m *'Height: 5.5 m *'''Powerplant: 2x compact fussion reactor *'Armor:' Titanium A battleplate *'Shield:' Class E Hard Light compact shield generator Performance *'Maximum speed: '''Mach 4 *'Range: Unlimited *'Combat radius: '''Unlimited Armament *'Guns: ''one of the following:'' **1x 30mm NS304 Vulcan 6-barreled gatling cannon **1x Class 2 Rapidfire Phase Cannon *'Air-to-air loudout:' **6x TAR-9 Sidekick **2x TAR-58 QAAM (Quick Maneuvering Air-to-Air Missile) *'Air-to-ground loudout:' **2x TAR-9 Sidekick **2x TAR-60 SGM and one of the following: ***8x 180kg UGB (Unguided Bomb) ***2x 600kg GPB (Guided Penetration Bomb) *'Special weapons (only 1 of these can be loaded on the hardpoints at any given time)' **1x Tactical Laser System **1x Electronic Counter Measure pod **4x MPBM (Multi-Purpose Burst Missile)